February
Syllabification: (Feb·ru·ar·y)
Pronunciation: /ˈfeb(y)o͞oˌerē, ˈfebro͞o-/
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Definition of February
noun ( plural Februaries)
Origin:
Middle English feverer, from Old French feverier, based on Latin februarius, from februa, the name of a purification feast held in this month. The spelling change in the 15th century was due to association with the Latin word
Note that February is spelled with an r following the Feb-. Precise speakers insist that the r should be pronounced, but this is not easy, and most people replace the r following Feb- with a y sound: Feb-yoo- rather than Feb-roo-. This is now becoming the accepted standard.